Solutions / Hospitality
Dining rooms
Tables can talk without shouting, and the room still feels lively.
What usually goes wrong
- Guests shout to be heard at busy times.
- Reviews mention the noise.
- The bar and kitchen carry into the dining room.
The main noise sources are many conversations, the kitchen and music. Sound bounces off hard walls, floors and ceilings, so it lingers and builds up. Absorbing panels soak up those reflections.
Where the panels go
- Above banquettes and between booths.
- Clouds over the busiest tables.
- The wall between the bar and the dining room.
Mistakes to avoid
- Making the room too quiet so it feels empty.
- Fabric near grease without a cleanable face.
Fire rating and codes
Assembly occupancy: Class A finishes; near food service choose a cleanable face.
Blocking sound between rooms
Panels make a room sound better, but they don’t stop sound passing through a wall. For that you need a wall assembly rated around STC 50, to keep the kitchen and bar out of private dining rooms. Read about STC ratings and soundproofing.
Recommended
Panels that suit dining rooms
Learning center
14 guides for dining rooms
Acoustic panels for dining rooms: the complete guideWhat makes dining rooms noisy, which panels fix it, and how to plan treatment from start to finish.How many acoustic panels does a restaurant need?A worked Sabine calculation for a typical dining room, with panel counts for small, typical and large rooms.Where to put acoustic panels in a restaurantWhere panels do the most good in dining rooms, in priority order.Wall acoustics for dining roomsHow walls behave acoustically in dining rooms and how to treat them with panels.Ceiling acoustics for dining roomsClouds, baffles and ceiling tiles for dining rooms, and how much of the ceiling to cover.Choosing panel thickness for a restaurant1, 2 or 4 inches: which thickness suits dining rooms and why.Reverberation time targets for dining roomsThe reverberation time to aim for in dining rooms, and why it matters.What acoustic treatment costs for a restaurantBudget estimates for treating a typical dining room, and where the money goes.Fabrics, colors and shapes for dining roomsFabric types, colors and shapes that work in dining rooms.Fire ratings and code requirements for panels in dining roomsFire ratings, occupancy rules and mounting requirements for panels in dining rooms.Installing acoustic panels in a restaurantTools, hardware and step-by-step installation for panels in dining rooms.Common acoustic mistakes in dining roomsThe errors we see most often in dining rooms, and how to avoid them.Soundproofing and STC ratings for dining roomsWhen dining rooms need soundproofing, which STC rating to aim for, and how to get there.Restaurant acoustics checklist and FAQA one-page checklist and answers to common questions about dining room acoustics.